Quilty Quick Draw (@scissorhands)

#Aloha #Hawaii 🚨🚨Hawaii Part 4 of 4:  HAVA’s Hidden Enforcement Tool that lets the Federal Government take election money back!! Clawback: a state that violates HAVA is mandated to payback the federal money. 52 U.S.C. § 20903(d) - mandatory repayment Applies when a State fails to comply with conditions attached to HAVA funds, just like Hawaii (see parts 1, 2 and 3 of posts in feed above). Repayment is not discretionary, a state “shall pay” back the HAVA funds and it applies to funds already received. Guess what: most states in the union are NOT in compliance with HAVA. This Title I funding enforcement authorizes the federal government to require repayment of HAVA funds already disbursed when statutory conditions are violated. How the clawback is actually enforced (the mechanics): HAVA uses multiple enforcement levers, not just one section. Second: 52 U.S.C. § 21112(a)(3) - DOJ enforcement trigger. This is how noncompliance is formally established. If a State fails to maintain a compliant HAVA complaint procedure Or fails to issue a final determination within 90 days....the matter escalates to DOJ. Once DOJ determines noncompliance, that finding becomes the predicate for funding consequences, including repayment under § 20903(d). Third: 52 U.S.C. § 20901(b) & § 20902(b) - conditional funding certifications These sections require States to certify ongoing compliance as a condition of receiving and keeping funds. If the certifications are false, stale, or contradicted by facts, funds are: -Improperly retained -Subject to recovery -Potentially implicate false certification / false statement statutes (outside HAVA)  criminal Why Hawaiʻi is uniquely exposed: -Hawaiʻi has not updated its HAVA State Plan since 2004 -Hawaiʻi has affirmatively disclaimed jurisdiction over HAVA complaints -That means Hawaiʻi does not maintain the complaint procedure required by 52 U.S.C. § 21112 That is structural noncompliance, not a technical defect Once DOJ or EAC recognizes that: ➡ § 20903(d) repayment authority is triggered ➡ Funds received during noncompliance are recoverable ➡ Continued acceptance of funds may constitute knowing false certification The State of Hawaii get your checkbook out! You owe the federal government $30,000,000!!! The federal government’s authority to claw back HAVA funds is expressly provided in 52 U.S.C. § 20903(d), which requires a State to repay funds received when it fails to comply with HAVA conditions, with noncompliance established through enforcement mechanisms including 52 U.S.C. § 21112. ~ [Peter Bernegger](https://t.me/PeterBernegger)